Nuno Tavares is close to a loan move to Atalanta, with Arsenal and the Serie A side now working on the final details of a move.

On Friday, Fabrizio Romano broke the news that Atalanta – not Brighton or Marseille – were leading the race to sign Nuno Tavares on loan.

Negotiations with Marseille reportedly ended last week, with the previous talk of progress on a deal denied. Brighton have indeed made enquiries, but Romano reported Atalanta are at the front of the queue.

Di Marzio then reported that Tavares is close to a loan to Atalanta, with no option to buy.

The Italian outlet claim Atalanta are close to the finish line, working on the final details of a move. Atalanta director Lee Congerton has been in charge of negotiations, having previously admitted his admiration for Tavares.

“I’ve followed Tavares since he was playing for Benfica’s youth team, he’s a strong player,” Congerton said in June. “But Tavares is under contract with Arsenal – and it’s really difficult to sign players from Premier League clubs.”

It looks as if Atalanta might overcome those difficulties to sign the left-back after all.

Arsenal have signed Oleksandr Zinchenko to add to their options at left-back, with Kieran Tierney already at the club.

Tavares’ best bet is probably to go on loan for the season and find some consistency, rather than sitting on the bench for a year.